


Five Ways Remus’s Mind Worked When He ‘Embraced Black Like A Brother’ (And One Way It Didn’t)

by CitrusVanille



Series: Five Ways [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Evil, Drabble, Drabble Sequence, M/M, Wordcount: 100
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-03-19
Updated: 2008-03-19
Packaged: 2018-04-13 09:37:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4516920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CitrusVanille/pseuds/CitrusVanille
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Six 100-word drabbles. Ch. 17 of PoA (Cat, Rat, and Dog) - what's going on in Remus's head when he embraces Sirius?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Remus’s arms wrap around Sirius, pulling him close. The other man feels at once both very right and very wrong in his arms.

 _He’s so thin!_ he thinks, mind somehow focusing on the inconsequential minutiae despite the gravity of the situation. _He’s skin and bones. I think I could count his ribs just holding him like this._

He loosens his embrace slightly, irrationally afraid of hurting this emaciated shadow of a man he once knew, of snapping him in half, but cannot bring himself to release him entirely until he hears Hermione shriek, the sound reminding him why he’s here.

– – –

Remus clutches Sirius against him, holding him tightly enough to hear bones creak, though he’s unsure if the creaking bones are Sirius’s, his own, or both. He’s half terrified the other man will vanish if he lets go.

 _Thank God he’s safe._ His very mind seems to sag with relief as his body sags against his old friend, the exhaustion creeping up on him for the last decade and change finally making itself known. And this isn’t the time to give in, he needs to focus, there are questions that need answering, but all he can think is, _He’s innocentinnocentinnocent…_

– – –

Remus pulls Sirius into an embrace, wondering how he’s managed to stand here as long as he has without doing this already, wishing he could do more than just _hug_ the man after _twelve years_ apart, but there are eight eyes – six human, two feline – burning holes in his back, reminding him that he mustn’t forget the children who are _watching him_ , staring gape-mouthed, because he’s a _professor_ and Sirius… Sirius is an escaped convict, for all he clearly didn’t commit the crimes for which he was convicted.

Despite this ultra-awareness of their audience, Remus still jumps when Hermione screams.

– – –

Remus grips Sirius tightly, reveling in the knowledge that this is _Sirius_ he’s holding, that this isn’t just another dream or an illusion, it is real and he can feel Sirius’s too-thin body and rough clothes under his trembling hands.

 _I’d almost forgotten what it felt like to hold him,_ he thinks, doing his best to melt into the other man. _I’d missed him so much, and now he’s here, he’s here. It’s been too long…_ And it’s all he can do to fight back choking tears, though whether they are tears of happiness or delayed grief, he doesn’t know.

– – –

Remus’s arms encircle Sirius and he can feel the other man’s arms close around him in response. He can feel the heat of Sirius’s body permeating his very skin and swallows hard.

 _How the Hell is it possible for him to still look good enough to eat after twelve years in Azkaban?_ he wonders, then, _How can I want to jump him when he looks like_ that _?_

Because he _knows_ Sirius looks like a wreck, but it’s _Sirius_ , and Sirius will always _be_ Sirius, and the ghost of what he once was lingers despite the corpse-like figure he has become.

– – –

Remus clasps Sirius in his arms, mind working swiftly.

Sirius was never supposed to get out of Azkaban, but now that he’s free, it’s probably best to revert to the original plan Remus had concocted with Voldemort: frame Peter for the death of the Potters then use his own influence with Sirius to sway the man to the proper side. It might even be easier if Sirius has truly been unhinged by Azkaban. Perhaps, with the help of the undeniably talented Black, Voldemort can be fully restored.

All Remus needs to do is use the Imperius Curse on foolish Peter.

– – –


	2. Another Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And then they were evil...

Remus meets Sirius’s eyes right before he pulls him into a hug. He knows they’re both thinking the same thing: if they frame Peter, not only will Sirius’s name be cleared, he will be hailed as a hero, and, even better, they’ll be able to work together to find Voldemort and help him return to power.

They’ve always been at their best when they are together, and Sirius Black has resources that Remus, the outcast werewolf, can’t get near. The possibilities are endless, and weak-willed Peter will be easy to manipulate.

Hermione shrieks and the two men separate.

Show time.

**END**


End file.
